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Key Points: The USS Jimmy Carter, the final Seawolf-class submarine, represents a pinnacle of U.S. Navy undersea warfare capabilities. This nuclear-powered attack submarine, boasting a unique 100-foot hull extension for advanced missions, can deploy SEALs, operate unmanned vehicles, and conduct intelligence operations.

-Known for its stealth, speed, and firepower, the Jimmy Carter is critical for U.S. operations in the Pacific, particularly in countering China’s naval expansion.

-Currently undergoing maintenance, it will soon return to service, ready for surveillance, special operations, and potential strike missions, solidifying its role as a vital tool in U.S. naval strategy.

USS Jimmy Carter: The Best U.S. Navy Seawolf-Class Submarine? 

When President Jimmy Carter was in the U.S. Naval Academy, he told his classmates he would be a four-star admiral and Chief of Naval Operations someday. Assigned to the Navy’s submarine service, he eventually did better than CNO, becoming governor of Georgia and later the leader of the free world. He must be proud of the submarine that carries his namesake—the USS Jimmy Carter—a nuclear-powered attack submarine that dominates in the water and is called by some the “Remarkable USS Jimmy Carter.”

It Had Deployed With Outstanding Crews

The Jimmy Carter boat is a Seawolf-class and not your typical submarine. It admittedly was a pricy vessel, ringing in at over $3.5 billion. 

But its crew has received the Presidential Unit Citation, which means that it operates at the optimum level even though it is expensive to keep in the water and maintain. 

USS Jimmy Carter: Quick History of this Excellent Sub

The Jimmy Carter is the third and last sub of the Seawolf class. Production of the sub began in 1996, when the Electric Boat Division of General Dynamics in Groton, Connecticut, was awarded the production contract. The keel was laid down in 1998, and the sub was commissioned in 2005.

The U.S. Navy’s newest attack submarine, USS Seawolf (SSN 21), conducts Bravo sea trials off the coast of Connecticut in preparation for its scheduled commissioning in July 1997.

Multiple Undersea Warfare Missions  

The Jimmy Carter is attractive because its design creates a diverse range of missions enabled by an Ocean Interface section in the hull. This gives 100 feet of extra space for equipment for multiple operations. The extension is called the Multi-Mission Platform. This allows the Jimmy Carter to control an undersea remotely piloted vehicle and gives more room to operate the advanced SEAL delivery vehicle. There is plenty of room for SEALs and their equipment. Up to 50 maritime special operators can be deployed from the Jimmy Carter.

It is Out of Action for the Next Four Months

The Carter is currently undergoing maintenance at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility in Washington state. This period will last four months, but once Jimmy Carter is done it will go back to its homeport of Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor also in Washington state.

More About the Seawolf-class 

The first of the Seawolf-class, the USS Seawolf, was commissioned in 1997. The Seawolf-class boasts eight torpedo tubes with the ability to deploy up to 50 weapons in its torpedo room. This consists of Tomahawk cruise missiles and mines. The Seawolf-class is known for being able to sneak around the sea collecting intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance data. Due to this spying role, much of Seawolf-class capabilities are classified, and naval leadership speaks mainly about the boats in vague terms such as “deterrence” and “flexibility.”

Seawolf-Class. Image Credit: Creative Commons.

The Seawolf-class fast-attack submarine USS Connecticut transits the Pacific Ocean during Annual Exercise. ANNUALEX is a yearly bilateral exercise with the U.S. Navy and the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force.

Could This Be One of the Best Submarines in the Navy?

General Dynamics is proud of the Seawolf-class for being the “fastest, quietest, most heavily armed undersea vessels in the world.” 

The defense contractor explains what sets the Jimmy Carter apart from the rest of its class. “The $887 million modification required alterations to the basic Seawolf design in the areas of ballast control, mission-management spaces, and various services. A unique feature of the modification was the creation of a flexible ocean interface, referred to as the ‘wasp waist,’ which enables the Navy to deploy and recover various payloads without having to use torpedo tubes.”

Big Weapon Against China

Once the maintenance period is over Jimmy Carter will take to the sea and conduct its spy role on enemy shipping. Since it is homeported in the Pacific, you can bet it will be active in East Asia patrolling the East and South China Seas, along with the Taiwan Strait to make sure that Chinese aircraft carriers, frigates, and destroyers do not try any attacks or a blockade against Taiwan. The Jimmy Carter could also be ready on a moment’s notice to deploy SEALs or to fire its cruise missiles at land targets. 

Seawolf-class USS Jimmy Carter

Seawolf-class Submarine. Image Credit: Creative Commons.

The great thing about the Jimmy Carter is the multi-mission set. It is fast and stealthy and a significant part of naval special operations and spying missions, not to mention its ability to destroy enemy shipping. 

China should be aware that the Jimmy Carter and its Seawolf-class boats have a unique advantage in undersea warfare, and they should be taken seriously as a significant weapon by U.S. Navy battle planners who try to predict what will happen in East Asia in the coming years.

About the Author: Dr. Brent M. Eastwood 

Brent M. Eastwood, PhD, is the author of Don’t Turn Your Back On the World: a Conservative Foreign Policy and Humans, Machines, and Data: Future Trends in Warfare, plus two other books. Brent was the founder and CEO of a tech firm that predicted world events using artificial intelligence. He served as a legislative fellow for U.S. Senator Tim Scott and advised the senator on defense and foreign policy issues. He has taught at American University, George Washington University, and George Mason University. Brent is a former U.S. Army Infantry officer. He can be followed on X @BMEastwood.